Thursday, November 4, 2010

Go and Be Intentional

Earlier this week, I witnessed a motor vehicle crash happen - I believe that this was only the second time in my life that I've watched the actual event unfold. A car decided to turn left directly in front of a local deputy sheriff's car. Fortunately both were only doing 20-25 miles per hour in a congested area of downtown, and there were no injuries to report.

Getting into an crash with a law enforcement officer has got to be about the worst possible way to start a day. Accidents are bad enough, much less to do it with one of those responsible for responding to an accident (and determining fault and issuing tickets). Why not just hit an ambulance? Were there no school buses in the area?

These crashes are called accidents for a reason - generally speaking, most crashes happen accidentally. Sure there may be extenuating circumstances that lead up to the crash (distracted drivers, sudden surprises, impairment, etc), but most drivers don't physically engage other vehicles intentionally.

There is no such thing as a coincidence. I believe that each day we are introduced to people who can benefit from our positive impact. It's whether we choose to be a blessing, a curse, or just remain silent that dictates our impact on each person. Doing nothing comes naturally and requires no additional effort. Impacting people, however, is difficult, requires practice and preparation, and sometimes involves rejection. Yet there is no greater investment we can make than intentionally impacting others positively for His Kingdom's purpose.